Boeing wrests Hawaiian Airlines order away from Airbus

Originally published March 6, 2018 at 3:45 pm
Updated March 6, 2018 at 9:04 pm

Boeing announced Tuesday it has won an order for 10 787-9 jets from Hawaiian Airlines, which has used Airbus planes for its long-haul fleet and had ordered more. Pictured is a 787-9 Dreamliner at Boeing’s delivery center at Paine Field in Everett in 2014. (Mike Siegel/The Seattle Times)

Boeing booked a significant sales win for its Dreamliner jets Tuesday as Hawaiian Airlines defected from Airbus to order 10 787-9 aircraft.

In 2014, Hawaiian ordered six A330-800s, which feature the latest fuel-efficient engines.

However, no other airline ordered that plane, which made lessors reluctant to finance it. So Hawaiian decided to cancel that order and re-open the competition — this time choosing between the larger A330-900neo and the Boeing 787-9.

Industry analyst Scott Hamilton of Leeham.net, who broke news of Boeing’s expected win last month, said Boeing offered aggressive pricing to beat Airbus because it aims “to kill the A330neo program in advance of the potential launch of the Boeing 797.”

Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Kevin McAllister noted Hawaiian’s growth trajectory as it has expanded service between Asia and North America.

“We are thrilled they’ve chosen to reach their next horizon with the 787 Dreamliner,” McAllister said.

Another current sales competition for big widebody jets, at American Airlines, features a similar battle between the A330-900neo and the 787-9.

American has an order for 22 Airbus A350s on its books but has said it may cancel that in favor of one of the other two models. It will choose this year between the Airbus and Boeing options, a key decision for the future of the A330neo.